Four Essential Qualities for Equity & Justice Work
Photo by Nick Fewings on Unsplash
What a time we are living through.
It is a time of disruption. It is a time of opportunity. Right now, it is a privilege to be learning together with our friends, clients and colleagues. We are travelers on a journey towards a new way of being. We must change. Glaring inequity demands it. Our compromised health demands it, our dysfunctional politics demands it, our suffering planet demands it. It is not sustainable to perpetuate systems that leave people behind. Change is coming and we are hopeful.
As we move forward with our work, we thought we would pause for a moment and share a few thoughts. Moving towards equity and justice is hard. The status quo is a powerful force. Our experiences in recent years affirm the idea that equity and justice work requires a combination of personal growth and systems change. Attempts at systems change without an expansion in personal awareness can create unintended barriers. In recent years, we have observed these four essential qualities in people and organizations who are making progress.
Commitment
The leaders of the organization invest time, attention and resources to center the voices, expertise and experience of people of the Global Majority and people who have been excluded.
The organization’s leaders, staff and constituents have (or are willing to work towards) trusting and real relationships.
Participants bring time, patience, and tenacity to the hard work needed to shift systems.
Humility
The wisdom and lived experiences of people who have been excluded are uplifted, even when they challenge conventional ways of thinking, being, and doing.
Racism and oppression take many forms and continue to shift over time. It requires remaining teachable and a willingness to continually shift and grow our understanding to evolve towards equity and justice.
Oftentimes pivots are needed to address mistakes or to meet emerging needs.
Courage
There is a willingness to be uncomfortable and take risks on behalf of equity and justice.
Members of the organization have the capacity to stand up to the backlash that happens when meaningful changes in culture, policies or practice begin to occur.
Creativity
Imagination and creativity is needed to dismantle old systems and replace them with new ways of relating to and supporting each other, sharing power, delivering content, assessing outcomes, and more.
Cultivating these four qualities in ourselves and our communities will help us on our journey towards a more just world.